TEMPLE GRANDIN: ORIGINAL SCORE (ALEX WURMAN)

A biopic of Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who has become one of the top scientists in the humane livestock handling industry. This is the Emmy nominated score.

TRACK LIST

Track list wasn’t provided

WHAT WE THOUGHT

Alex Wurman was a guy who I thought only did comedies and chick flicks. “Temple Grandin” has allowed Wurman to stretch past his usual films and into a new kind of realm. Scoring the prestige picture has been hard, as it requires a heavy hand without being ridiculous. When the Emmy nominations came out, I have to admit that I was surprised to see Wurman had been nominated. Television film scores that play with structure from previously unrecognized talent rarely gets awarded. Now, we’ve got to chance to see that being a musical maverick can pay off.

The details of Grandin’s life are fleshed out that Temple Grandin begins to morph into a seriously compelling piece of work, with Danes’ captivating turn certainly playing a significant role in the movie’s unexpected success. Wurman’s ability to blend the achievement that Danes and Ormond experience onscreen informs the musical emotion. Playing back and forth across time tends to ruin the tone of many other film scores, but Wurman plays with it. When you realize that the last section takes place between the first two-thirds of the film, it almost seems mathematically constructed. One would think that Wurman studied Grandin’s thought pattern to inform the structure of the score.

In the end, it’s easy to ignore a score like this when you’re so captivated by a true life story. But, take the time to venture past Grandin’s journey when it hits DVD. Listen to Wurman’s careful highs and lows, as he builds a world in the hurried mind of the autistic titular character. Wurman’s next film is The Switch, so I don’t expect the same kind of musical playfulness. But, I did enjoy what I heard here.